Sony cries foul play over Pirates' booty

Sony Pictures top brass have poured cold water over the release of Disney's latest Pirates of the Caribbean adventure by calling into question the latter's alleged world record opening.

Disney chiefs wasted little time in trumpeting the launch of their latest high seas saga involving Johnny Depp et al, claiming a record $251m (£126.9m) box office booty in the film's first six days in release in cinemas outside North America. The alleged tally rises to $404m (£204.4m) worldwide.

However in the eyes of Sony, whose very own Spider-Man 3 opened to record numbers this month, this represented an unacceptable incursion of territorial waters. The studio wasted little time firing off a broadside that left nobody in any doubt who the rightful world record holder should be.

The public sabre-rattling is highly unusual even by Hollywood's standards, where corporate rivalry and the intense competition for box office dollars are typically played out behind closed doors.

However the gloves came off last night, albeit in an elegant and carefully worded manner, when Sony's corporate communications chief Steve Elzer sent an email to the press that claimed Disney had been a little creative in adding up its numbers.

"While Disney and the filmmakers of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End deserve their due on a remarkable opening worldwide, there are some irregularities in their claim regarding record-setting and there are at least two territories - Italy and France - where Buena Vista International opened the film on Tuesday - in essence adding a seventh day of grosses into Pirates' 'six day record'" Elzer wrote.

"[We] believe that as more and more day-and-date releases enter the marketplace, there should be a consistent standard in international box office reporting. This issue is larger than an opening week box office statistic.

"For the record, Spider-Man 3 grossed $418.1m [£211.5m] in its first seven days of release worldwide with $256.7m [£129.9m] generated from territories overseas."

Thus far Disney sources have refused to comment. We wait with bated breath for upcoming box office reporting in what is shaping up to become the biggest summer in history. Harry Potter And The Order of The Phoenix, The Simpsons Movie, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Transformers, and The Bourne Ultimatum are just some of the celluloid behemoths waiting in the wings.